Title: LATE REGISTRATION POLICY AND IMPLICATIONS FOR STUDENT SUCCESS
        AT A SINGLE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Abstract

This case study examined the relationships between one community college's late registration policy and first-time students retention and academic performance within the context of one institution in northwest Illinois. The institutional setting and policies and procedures related to first-time student registration were delineated. Students characteristics were analyzed in an attempt to determine whether or not late registering students differed from timely registrants in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, enrollment status, and course placement recommendations. Academic performance, in terms of fall semester GPA, fall semester course success rate, and fall-to-spring semester retention, were also examined. Finally, the quantitative research findings related to academic outcomes and student characteristics were shared with key personnel at the college for their input as to their implications for institutional policy and practice.

The records of 959 first-time degree or certificate seeking community college students, 861 timely and 98 late, who enrolled in either fall 2000 or fall 2001 were examined in order to answer these research questions. Late registrants in this study were defined as the first-time students whose initial registration for fall semester courses occurred sometime during the first week of instruction. Timely registrants were those students who initially registered prior to the start of fall semester courses.

Chi-squared analyses showed that late registering students were more likely to be men as well as part-time students. No significant associations were found in regard to the ethnicity, age, or course placement recommendations variables for late registering students. Pearson's correlation analyses did not find any significant relationships between (a) late registration and fall semester GPA, (b) late registration and fall course success rate, or (c) late registration and fall-to-spring retention. However, the three academic outcome variables were positively correlated with one another.

As noted by the college's personnel, there were several implications for these findings: (a) the college needed to develop a written late registration policy and work with its faculty so that the policy was consistently implemented, (b) a faculty academic advising model may assist the college in dealing with the tremendous backlog of students trying to see an advisor prior to each semester, which some felt attributes to student's delay in enrollment, and (c) the addition of late starting and more flexible scheduling options would benefit late starting students and the institutions. The researcher also noted several key conclusions, which included the importance of outlining the institutional context for interpreting the study's findings, more research is needed in order to ascertain the true relationships between late registration and academic outcomes, and the need for analysis of the impact additional community colleges policies have on student success. Implications for future research are also noted.